The Fantasy of Fishing (Part 2)

After dinner, Lin Lei didn't spend much time with Aierlan. He hastily wiped his slightly greasy lips with a napkin handed to him by a maid, then returned alone to a study barely ten square meters in size.

A few old pieces of parchment were scattered across the Wind Fragrance Wood desk. Beside them lay a jumble of quills, their tips dried out; it had been a long time since they'd last been used.

Though Lin Lei called it a study, it was really an office. Apart from the secret manual on battle aura he'd gotten from Allen last time, there were no other books. There was, however, plenty of antique furniture. Lin Lei hadn't arranged any of it himself; Aierlan had had it placed there when she was furnishing the room.

As she put it, a noble had to look the part. A study could be without books, but it had to contain enough items to show off a noble's refinement. Otherwise, if other nobles found out, they would look down on him and mock him.

As a result, the study now held a few things that looked expensive but were always in the way.

Lin Lei leaned back lazily in his chair and picked up the piece of parchment closest to him. It was a financial report.

"What's going on? We've acquired so many resources, yet the finances are still in the red."

Lin Lei hadn't thought much of it until he looked at the report. Over the past few months, Crouching Dragon Ravine had taken in more than three million gold coins in total—about as much as a small merchant caravan's annual profit. And yet, somehow, the territory was still running a deficit.

The largest expense was the purchase of people, which had cost more than 1.5 million. Each person wasn't particularly expensive, but nearly all of Lin Lei's subjects had come from these purchases. After several major transactions and a number of smaller ones, Crouching Dragon Ravine's population had passed the ten-thousand mark.

His buying spree had even caused prices across the entire slave market to fluctuate.

The people themselves had cost more than 200,000 gold coins. Providing them with food, tools for work, and basic facilities had pushed the expense past 1.5 million.

The second-largest expense was the soldiers. The territory paid them a monthly salary, no higher than what soldiers in Flower Territory received.

There was also the cost of feeding them every day and providing weapons and equipment for their regular training. If they fell in battle, the territory also paid compensation to their families. All told, those expenses came to more than a million.

Almost all the rest went toward Lin Lei's own food and drink, hiring mages, and other such expenses. Crouching Dragon Ravine had gone from a territory overflowing with gains to being back where it started.

"At least the subjects we've already bought were a one-time expense. From now on, they'll mostly pay taxes, so they're like a source of dividends."

Lin Lei took a deep breath. His brows furrowed for a moment, then relaxed.

"But even so, the territory's finances are still tight. Other nobles can grow their populations just by encouraging people to have children. My territory can't do that. Its population base is too small, and if I rely on natural growth, it'll take far too long. I'll have to keep buying slaves.

"So I need to find more ways to increase revenue. A Wind Fragrance Wood forest can bring in about 350,000 gold coins in profit each year. Green Goblin Town's annual harvest of pelts, ore, and medicinal herbs, minus the food and weapons Crouching Dragon Ravine provides, should bring in about 400,000 gold coins.

"Besides its farmers, Crouching Dragon Ravine also has blacksmiths, tailors, bakeries, taverns, and other businesses. They can bring in about 200,000 gold coins in taxes each year. Once the three-year tax exemption ends, the farmers can contribute another 100,000.

"That's enough to cover the army's daily expenses and keep the territory running, but it's nowhere near enough for development."

Lin Lei thought it over and came up with a plan.

Increasing revenue and cutting expenses was the best approach. Cutting expenses wasn't an option, since they were all necessary. For now, the only thing he could do was increase revenue and find more ways to make money.

"But anything involving money is difficult. Money is hard to earn, just as shit is hard to swallow. That saying couldn't be truer. Finding a steady source of income isn't easy.

"Most other noble territories have their own merchant caravans and trade routes. Flower Territory, for example, has a medium-sized caravan called the Rose Chamber of Commerce. It can earn more than ten million in profit a year. The combined taxes from Flower Territory's other towns only just match that."

Lin Lei murmured to himself.

He had already begun preparing to establish a merchant caravan in Crouching Dragon Ravine, but they didn't have any trade routes, and were short on both managers and escorts. With the basic framework still incomplete, the caravan wouldn't start earning a real profit for years. It couldn't solve the problem at hand.

"Burp!"

Lin Lei was a little stuffed. Halfling cooking had been getting tastier and tastier, and he'd accidentally eaten too much. The whole study now smelled of fish.

"Fish... Right! I can develop the fishing industry on a large scale. These land-bound nobles only pay attention to profits on land. Their thinking has been constrained for so long that they completely overlook the ocean's potential. Even when Flower Territory held a banquet once and served seafood, it was never treated as a main course.

"My territory is so close to the coast. Why not develop fishing on a large scale and harvest the ocean's precious resources?"

The idea suddenly struck Lin Lei.

"The ocean's resources are practically inexhaustible. Black pearls and red agates are luxuries among nobles. Even a black pearl the size of a pigeon's egg can fetch over a thousand gold coins, let alone larger pearls and agates."

Just thinking about it excited Lin Lei. He put down the parchment and stopped reading the rest of the reports. Taking a cloak made from the black hide of a silver-ranked magical beast from the rack behind him, he headed toward the administrative office.

"Wait, Allen and Luo Ji both went out to take care of something."

He had just taken a step when he remembered the orders he'd given earlier. He'd been so excited that he'd forgotten about them.

Realizing no one was available, Lin Lei turned toward the barracks instead. He planned to have Furell give it a try.

The territory was developing quickly, but Lin Lei had very few capable people he could rely on. He had no choice but to let Furell, a Goblin, give it a try.

"Furell, have you ever seen the ocean?"

"My lord, I have. I once led my people to fish by the shore."

Lin Lei raised an eyebrow and pursed his lips, looking incredulous.

"Really? Your Goblin tribe lived quite far from there. Why go fishing by the shore instead of hunting in the forest?"

"My lord, you may not know, but one year, for some unknown reason, a small-scale stampede of magical beasts broke out in the forest. We shut our village gates and made it through unscathed.

"But that was only the beginning. After the stampede ended, we went out hunting, but there wasn't a single prey animal—not one living creature. The whole forest was silent.

"We had no choice but to go to the shore and get by on fish. It wasn't until six months later, when magical beasts gradually returned to the forest, that we were able to resume our old way of life."

"A strange stampede, followed by a strange disappearance."

A puzzled thought flashed through Lin Lei's mind, but it was only a passing thought. He soon turned to the matter at hand and explained his idea.

"Furell, what do you think of the resources in the ocean?"

"There are plenty. When I was leading my tribe, we could catch dozens of pounds of fish every day."

"Exactly. The ocean's resources are incredibly rich—ten times richer than you can imagine. So the territory needs to build a dock, a shipyard, and a deep-sea fishing fleet. I'd like you to take charge of this task."

"Yes, my lord."

Furell agreed without hesitation. He'd been stuck in the barracks for days, and was nearly bored to tears. Having a job he could get started on sounded great.

"Come, take a look here."

Lin Lei took out a crude map and pointed it out to him. It showed only the islands of Kul Tiras, with Crouching Dragon Ravine, Green Goblin Town, and Flower Territory marked most prominently.

"This is where you'll be going. It's an excellent natural harbor, with no reefs and deep water. It's an ideal place to build a dock.

"I've decided to send a thousand human residents there. Green Goblin Town will also send five hundred Goblins. The two races will live together. That'll make it easier to recruit workers, promote integration between Goblins and humans, and ease the population pressure on Crouching Dragon Ravine and Green Goblin Town."

Furell's expression didn't change as he listened. He'd long expected Lin Lei to divide them this way, but he had no intention of objecting.

"My lord, how many soldiers should I take?"

"Hmm... a hundred. Crouching Dragon Ravine needs its patrols to kill the magical beasts that wander in from time to time, so that's all the soldiers I can spare right now.

"But I've been to that coast, and there shouldn't be much danger. A hundred soldiers will be enough to keep things in order."

Lin Lei considered it for a moment before giving his answer.

"Go make the preparations. I'll notify the administrative department and have the residents get ready to move."

"Yes, my lord."

Furell left without a sound. It was hard to imagine that such a large body could move so quietly, but Lin Lei wasn't surprised. As a gold-ranked fighter, he understood that kind of control over one's body.

"The ocean, the ocean..."

Lin Lei murmured to himself.

"I feel like I've forgotten something. Could there be any danger in the ocean? Probably not."

The sky darkened as night fell. A lone figure walked along the streets of Crouching Dragon Ravine. He was dignified and imposing, but a piece of black cloth covered his face, concealing his true features.

It was Lin Lei, fresh from the barracks. Looking at Crouching Dragon Ravine, now thriving and prosperous, he'd suddenly gotten the idea to imitate the ancient emperors and go out incognito.

He wanted to see whether there were any serious violations of the law in his territory. The higher you stood, the farther you could see, but the harder it was to make out the details. Only by getting close to ordinary people could he learn what problems there were and help Crouching Dragon Ravine develop better and faster.